The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the hurricane was stalled about 140 miles west-southwest of Acapulco, and it was expected to move a little closer to the coast later Tuesday before veering back out to sea on Wednesday.

Raymond had been a Category 3 hurricane on Monday, with winds as high as 125 mph. It was the first "major" hurricane in either the Pacific or the Atlantic this hurricane season. Major hurricanes are Categories 3, 4, and 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity.

On Monday, Mexican authorities rushed to deploy emergency crews and said they were considering ordering evacuations of low-lying areas. About 10,000 people already were living away from their homes a month after Manuel inundated whole neighborhoods and caused landslides that buried much of one village. It left behind drenched hillsides that posed serious landslide risks.

David Korenfeld, head of Mexico's National Water Commission, said officials were pinning their hopes on a cold front moving from the north that could help steer Raymond away from the coast.

"The cold front coming down is what makes it (Raymond) turn to the left, but that is a model," Korenfeld said. "If that cold front comes down more slowly, this tropical storm ... can get closer to the coast."

Forecasters said that even if Raymond stays offshore, the storm could dump heavy rain and cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides along the south-central Mexican coast.

One reporting station near Acapulco reported a rainfall total of 7.63 inches over the past two days from the storm, the hurricane center reported.

"There will be rain for the next 72 hours along the Pacific coast - very heavy rain, torrential rain," Korenfeld said.

Raymond's center was about 100 miles south-southwest of the beach resort of Zihuatanejo and it had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph as of 5 p.m. ET Tuesday.

A hurricane warning was in effect from Tecpan de Galeana, up the coast from Acapulco, north to the port of Lazaro Cardenas. A tropical storm warning was posted from Acapulco to Tecpan.

Authorities in the southern state of Guerrero, where Manuel caused about 120 deaths from flooding and landslides in September, closed seaports, set up 700 emergency shelters and urged residents in risk areas to take precautions. The Associated Press reported that more than 100 people had been evacuated from a mountain town east of Acapulco.

The state cancelled classes in most coastal communities west of Acapulco, including Zihuatanejo. Schools are often used as emergency shelters in Mexico.

The potential for damage from such rains is high. About 50 dams in the area are still over capacity, and officials began releasing water to make room for expected rainfall.

Some villages high in the mountains of Guerrero were still without electricity and phone service following Manuel.

In Zihuatanejo, near the Ixtapa resort, authorities sent emergency personnel into low-lying areas to warn people to seek safer ground, said Miguel Quiroz, a local Red Cross dispatcher.

Far out in the open Atlantic Ocean, Tropical Storm Lorenzo continued to spin about 830 miles east of Bermuda. As of 5 p.m. ET, the storm had winds of 50 mph. It poses no threat to land and is expected to weaken on Wednesday.

Contributing: Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

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